MANILA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A senior Philippine official said on Tuesday that the Philippines' integration into the larger Asia-Pacific trade pact Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will further boost the country's trade performance.
Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia also said the proposed RCEP agreement, which will lead to the creation of the world's largest trade bloc, will provide opportunities for all economies involved.
The RCEP includes the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam - and six free trade agreement partners China, South Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and India.
"This partnership may facilitate more exchange of goods and services, attract investments, create more jobs, and improve the standard of living," Pernia said.
ASEAN accounts for 21.7 percent of the Philippines' total trade, while the share of RCEP economies to Philippine trade is 60.5 percent.
The RCEP ministers discussed during their meeting in Manila on Sunday ways to accelerate the establishment of the RCEP, which covers nearly a third of the global economy.
Launched in 2012, the RCEP is also expected to expand the ASEAN market from 600 million people to 3.5 billion, according to ASEAN data.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), and attached agency of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), reported that the government recorded a 2.3 percent growth in total trade in July 2017, higher than the previous month's 1.5 percent growth.
The PSA said merchandise trade grew to 12.2 billion U.S. dollars, with a 10.4-percent exports growth offsetting the 3.2 percent decline in imports.
Total trade from January to July 2017 grew to 87.8 billion U.S. dollars or 10.3 percent increase, compared with the same period last year.
"Our country's trade performance is consistent with the Asian trade growth. We are optimistic that higher growth will be achieved for the remaining months of the year," Pernia said.
For July, the PSA said remarkable growth rates in exports were observed in Hong Kong, 26.2 percent; Thailand, 24.2 percent; South Korea, 31.8 percent; Malaysia, 31.6 percent, and Vietnam, 16.4 percent.
For the same period, the PSA said imports coming from the ASEAN region grew 8.5 percent, led by Indonesia, 44.3 percent and Vietnam, 50.8 percent.
NEDA noted that ASEAN member states agreed during the recent ASEAN Economic Community meetings to prioritize trade in goods and trade facilitation, among others.
"For the region, this means a chance to double intra-ASEAN trade by 2025. For the Philippines, this means strengthened economic ties with our neighbors and a chance to deepen our partnerships," Pernia said.
